Shelter Cocker Rescue Northern CA

Monday, November 16, 2009

Six year old stray Banjo hasn't had a permanent home in over a year :(He wants to sit by your side or to be your loving companion.Taller and bigger than the normal cocker, we think that he might be mixed with springer or brittany spaniel. He has a deep bark like a golden retriever too.

His coloring is gorgeous, as it's mixed with white and red on his chest, face and paws. His coat is flat.

He had cherry eye surgery on both eyes and a recent follow-up eye exam. Banjo has excellent vision and low pressure numbers, so no cataracts or future eye problems on the horizon for this cutie :)

Because he is about 30 pounds and can move quickly, we feel that his best home is without young children, who he could easily knock over. He lives with other dogs, but he most likely will do best as the only pet. Banjo adores when someone pays attention to just him.

Thursday, July 9, 2009

I adopted her 7 years ago from a rescue group in Southern California - before I became a dog rescuer.

She had the strongest personality of any cocker that I've ever adopted. Holly was one of the main reasons that I started Shelter Cocker Rescue in Southern California - to save cockers like her from shelter deaths and to find them new homes in Southern and Northern California.

She would growl at other animals who came anywhere near her food and she would run into the refrigerator each time the door was opened.

Despite a lot of different medicines, her genetics were so bad that we couldn't clear up her existing ear, eye, skin or organ weaknesses.She had liver disease, a heart murmur, cataracts and a rectal tumor. Holly had been a guard dog for a blind man and when he had to go into a nursing home, Holly was turned over to a rescue group. I adopted her from them.

She made it "her job" to guard me, even around my husband Bill. She would always run to be next to me and watch when anybody came close to me. Holly would then growl or lunge at them as she protected me.

However, Holly was loving with me and she let me take care of all of her needs. She was also a sweetie with people outside of our house.

In her last 2 days, her stomach grew very big. The vets believed that she went into major organ failure since she was retaining water and losing body functions.Her breathing was labored and it was time for me to let her go before she suffered.I loved that pretty girl a LOT, even though she was a challenge.She will be very sadly missed.

Monday, January 5, 2009

His wonderful foster Mom adopted him !!!This 8 old blind cocker is a gorgeous looking, very loving animal who's currently being fostered by a sweet lady in Sonoma, California.Oakley is happy to cuddle with his owner. All he needs is a warm place to lay his bones. He runs like a younger animal and you'd never know that he's blind. He perks up to interesting smells and eats his doggie food with gusto. He enjoys his soft toys too :)If you're interested in him, please send an e-mail to: adoptcockers@aol.com

Sunday, December 21, 2008

Five year old Scamp is very cute, with a curly red coat. Smaller than some cockers, he loves to play with toys and balls. Although he's being fostered in Sonoma, Scamp needs a permanent home. The kind woman who's temporarily taking care of him has other pets that need attention too.

He has food aggression, so Scamp has to be separated from other pets when he is eating. He is very smart and is quite a playful and energetic little character. Because of this, he can be devilish and run with items that you don't want him to have. Please send an e-mail to: adoptcockers@aol.com if you'd be interested in more information about this playful and active boy.

We're happy that over the last 7 years we were able to save over 350 dogs from euthanasia in the shelters. Our goal was to save as many cockers in the shelters as we could before they were put to sleep.

Because of our rescue work these past 7 years, we still have a lot of bills to pay. If you'd like to help us, we'd certainly appreciate contributions of any amount.

Our PayPal account for donations is:sheltercockers@aol.comAnd many thanks to the people that have adopted dogs from us. We sure hope that you're enjoying your cuties. Thank you for giving them a new and wonderful life!Laura MadarasPhone: 408-835-4264

Thursday, December 11, 2008

**************************Please sign our petition - see below for the link

Find the pets' real owners before they're put to sleepIn April, we adopted our 2 year old boy Scout to a Southern California woman. Without telling us, she put the boy to sleep. He was microchipped to our group and the vet never scanned him or called us before he was put down. We're now starting a huge initiative to tell legislators that thousands of pets are being put to sleep without vets and animal professionals first checking for a microchip. They need to call the person registered to the microchip to verify real ownership of the pet before it is put down.Scout would still be alive today had the vet scanned him. He'd be back in our rescue after the vet called us, seeing that we were his microchipped owner.If you'd like to help us in our huge uphill battle, please go to our link below and sign our petition.

Friday, October 31, 2008

A lot of people, including rescuers, weren't too fond of him because he was so high strung and barky.

He was an older Australian Shepherd mix that was categorized on http://www.petharbor.com as a cocker. When I visited him at the Orange County, California shelter I found out that he wasn't a cocker after all. I rescued him anyway before he was put to sleep because I fell in love with his inner beauty that I could see, but other people couldn't.

He went from being a totally panic-stricken pacer to the most loving family dog that anybody could have hoped for. He's protective of his family and gives them kisses every night before going to bed.

My last days as a dog rescuer are coming to an end due to finances. It's photographs like this from his new owner that remind me of the reason that I put so much time, money and effort into being a dog rescuer.

It's clearly obvious from Charlie's spirit shining through in his devil costume that he will truly enjoy Halloween this year.

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Hollywood icon Melissa Bacelar suggested that we start a new fundraising contest that will benefit the remaining cocker spaniels.It's called the "Doggie Got a Home" contest.

Melissa Bacelar will send anyone who donates an autographed picture of herself. As an actress, Melissa's credits include: playing "Maria" on ABC's "One Life To Live" and several horror films including the award-winning "Strange Things Happen at Sundown." Her popularity continues to grow among horror fans, who anxiously wait in long lines to meet her at horror and comic book shows.

Sunday, October 26, 2008

Successful business woman and actress from the soap opera "One Life To Live" Melissa Bacelar found out about our rescue's plight and decided that she wanted to help us. On her day off, she volunteered to come to the Pasadena Rose Bowl to pitch our cockers Banjo (pictured above on left), Ivy, Scamp and blind Star (pictured above on right).

Although none of the cockers were adopted, we all had a great time showcasing the dogs and speaking with people about our plight.

Becky (ABOVE LEFT and below) on death's row at a Los Angeles, California city shelter two years ago

About Becky - pictured above and on the bottom of the page a year later

Becky was a 2 year old stray found in terrible condition and pregnant. Being on the street and malnutritioned, she lost 7 of her 8 puppies. Becky suffered because her owner wouldn't spay her or buy an ID tag or microchip. These items would have gotten her home. Becky also developed a form of epilepsy. She was adopted by a wonderful couple who also wanted Kirby, pictured on the bottom of this page. He had mange. Becky and Kirby now play lovingly with tennis balls all day long :)

Becky's only surviving pup

Becky's pup named Chance - a year later - He's twice the size of his mom now

Two peas in a pod - much better than the South Los Angeles, CA shelter :)

Shane doesn't care that sis is biting his tail - LOL

About Me

I realized that hundreds of dogs were being put to sleep in shelters because they needed grooming. I decided to send money for haircuts. Most shelters didn't accept my checks and these animals sadly died. I was horrified to learn that thousands of animals of all breeds are being put to sleep in shelters because they don't have an owner ID tag or microchip or because they need a haircut. People who lose pets don't know to look on: http://www.petharbor.com and http://www.petfinder.com. My goal was to save dogs from deaths in kill shelters and to find them a new home. We're very happy that we've been able to find homes for many dogs. All animals were spayed or neutered and had shots and a microchip.